“She left you, Lucien!” I shouted, every word laced with disbelief. “She walked out of your life for someone else, and now you act like she’s a saint?”
His reaction was immediate. His face darkened, jaw tight with fury.
“You ungrateful bitch.”
The venom in his tone froze my blood. Before I could react, he lunged forward and gripped my arm hard enough to bruise. I cried out in pain as he yanked me to my feet, my legs buckling beneath me.
“You think you can say things like that about Vanessa and get away with it?” he seethed, dragging me across the floor. “She’s the only woman I’ve ever loved. You were just… convenient.”
Each word stabbed deeper than the last.
My breath caught. I looked into his eyes and saw no trace of the man I once loved.
He wasn’t finished.
“Looks like being cooped up in the penthouse hasn’t taught you anything,” he muttered. “Let’s see if this changes your attitude.”
“No,” I gasped, trying to twist out of his hold. “Please, I’m begging you—”
But he was deaf to my pleas.
He dragged me through the corridors, down the stairs. The staff stood aside, heads bowed, eyes averted. No one dared to intervene. Not the bodyguards, not the butler—no one.